(1) Field of the Invention. This invention relates to an idler wheel assembly used in transporting documents.
(2) Description of the Related Art. In the processing of financial documents, like checks and deposit slips, for example, the documents are moved along a document track in being moved to various processing stations within financial processing machines, like encoders and sorters, for example. In moving the documents, there is generally a feed wheel located on one side of the document track and an idler wheel located on the opposite side of the track. The feed wheel is generally rotated at a constant velocity, and when a document is located between the feed wheel and the idler wheel, the document is moved in a feeding direction along the track.
In some feeding apparatuses, the idler wheel is always in contact with the feed wheel, waiting for a document to be moved therebetween so that the document can be fed further in the feeding direction. This type of apparatus causes excessive wear on both the feed and idler wheels. In other feeding apparatuses, the idler wheel is moved towards the feed wheel only when a document comes between the feed and idler wheels.
One problem associated with document feeders of the type mentioned is that they must handle or move documents which vary in weight and thickness. For example, the documents may range in weight from a thin document having a stock weight of 16 pounds to a thick document having a stock weight of 100 pounds. Very often, the document feeders require adjustments to handle the various thicknesses of documents mentioned. These adjustments are, at times, expensive and time consuming, resulting in down time for the processing machine.